Remembering A Dream I Had Last Night About Some OCs Who I’d Never Thought Would Meaningfully Interact

Put together my desktop theme! It’s a lil silly but I like it :) Hoping to find a less minimalistic theme at some point in the future perhaps

Nice things the DQXI Party would say (or think) about Erik 🩵

Veronica

Not much that she’d actually tell him about.

Veronica def respects his go-getter attitude. I feel like she’s also secretly super impressed by his niche market knowledge

Serena

Deeply respects Erik’s willingness to go to the ends of the earth for people he cares about. Heart of gold!

Thinks he’s rather cute too

Sylvando

Adores Erik’s dance moves! So suave and stylish!

Not the worst campsite cook either!

Jade

Eternally grateful for everything Erik’s done to protect the Luminary up until the point she found him again

For someone whose combat is informally trained and recreational at best? His skills are crazy impressive

Rab

Such a spry young lad! He wishes he had such a spirit when he was a young man!

It’s very cool to him that Erik has practical magic like Peek. And his Earth magic that just exists for some reason.

(Spolers for Act 2 Below)

Hendrik

Man was he annoying when Hendrik wasn’t fighting on the same side as him.

I think on a meta-level, Erik kind of helps Hendrik internally recontextualise what it means to be a good person

Say something nice about- Erik!

HAPPY!!!!!! MOTHER'S!!!!!!!!!!!!! DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

thank you so much to all the moms and motherly figures out there, I hope you have a wonderful day today. I love my mom so much

hai dhmisers im back do you think the main three are constantly sedated. do you think everything is bright and blurry to them. do you think lights flash in their faces and they dont know what they are and they talk all night but everything is hazy and they dont remember the conversation. do you think they have to fight the urge to stumble over because theyre dizzy and a bit confused but theyre so used to it that theyve gotten good at ignoring it. do you think duck had to ask red guy if he noticed the darkness because their surroundings are already so confusing and blurry that they have to confirm with each other what theyre seeing is what they think it is. do you think duck genuinely cant tell if its a bee or not. do you think yellow guy fell and broke the computer orb because he constantly feels drowsy and dizzy. do you think duck says the pain of his finger being cut or his organs being literally removed doesnt bother him at all because hes so out of it he doesnt register the pain. do you think red guy barely reacts to blood loss because it doesnt feel that different than normal. do you think lesley is also up there zooted out her damn mind and the words she says dont truly mean much because shes loopy as hell. all four of them tripping for eternity because they all have roles to fill and working minds dont make great puppets.

idk this is just how i assume the characters see the world. dizzy and blurry like waking up after a car crash. maybe a little ringing in the ears too. also the stage lights kind of blind them but when they look up its too bright and smudged to understand theres no ceiling. im not sure what or who would be doing this to them (im a firm believer lesley is one of them and not controlling them ive made this very clear through like seven different rants) but idk i just dont think theyd view things clearly i never really thought they would

ive always liked this idea more than the idea of them just seeing a regular house. i feel like thats not whats happening, i think they can see whats there but not fully comprehend or make out all of it. idk its 5am im tired as hell forgive me if im rusty on the dhmis lore and forgot some bullshit cuz knowing becky and joe they probably confirmed 13 years ago in a random lost media facebook post that the puppets see in ps2 graphics and im stupid and wrong rn

How DQXI Party Members would navigate TikTok

Erik

Started by posting silly videos for himself and his friends. Videos of him and Lumi doing viral dances, pranking Veronica, the occasional thirst trap fit check or cool knife trick

Accidentally got a decent amount of attention. Like, people get excited when they see him leaving comments on their videos.

Doesn’t post nearly as often as he did before he got famous. Posts way more often on a secret private account he made.

Veronica

TikTok almost banned her for not meeting their age requirement

She’s got a very small presence. Doesn’t post too much, maybe an occasional review of a book Serena recommended to her. Sometimes posts herself showing off new magic abilities.

Restricts most of her videos to “friends only” but that doesn’t stop Erik, Serena, and Sylv from dragging her onto their accounts.

Serena

Never actually meant to post any videos but then she saw a BookTok take that was so horrendous she couldn’t stop herself from making a 14 minute video stitching her response

One of the biggest influencers leading critical discussions about contemporary literature. Would like to post cooking videos, but she’s too shy/under-confident about her skills

Posts videos of herself playing the harp every now and then to try and share some positivity— and then goes right back to dragging Colleen Hoover’s name through wet dirt

Sylvando

His presence immediately drew the attention of all his adoring fans, and he eats it up. Always posting make up tutorials, GRWM, OOTD, cooking, dances, etc. If he misses one day of posting his followers think he’s dead.

A rare but treasured breed of Sylvando post is the two minute long video of him reminding his followers to never stop smiling, always protect their own light, and to never give up fighting against the darkness that plagues the world.

He also dedicates a lot of his content to promoting/collaborating with smaller accounts :) The spotlight is meant to be shared!

Jade

Rarely posts, but when she does it’s usually some variety of a “get ready with me” video. Accidentally became famous because she’s got a lethal face card.

Loves showing off her cutesy matching workout sets and her favorite post gym recipes. Collabs with Sylvando whenever they have homie gym dates :)

Very easily discomforted by the parasociality of social media and will randomly drop off the face of the earth for months at a time

Rab

Help him. He doesn’t even have his own TikTok account, the kids just drag him into their own

Recurring character in his children’s (the party’s) videos. “Seeing how many oranges I can stack on my grandfather’s head while he sleeps.” // “Grandpa’s first time playing deltarune” // “My grandpa’s favourite sandwich recipe”

Not always fully into it but it makes him feel young and hip, and he loves making his kids happy :)

Hendrik

He’s got one of those accounts with a blank profile picture and autogenerated username like hendrik0621593

Never posts anything. Follows his friends and likes their videos and minds his business. Occasionally asks Jasper what certain slang means because he’s so out of the loop.

Always ends up on strange niche sides of TikTok because the algorithm is so confused by him. Ended up following a few mushroom forager accounts.

Jasper

Only has an account so he can block Hendrik.

Has a hard time getting into social media because he’s just so disinterested in the affairs of random people. Whenever he sees something annoying online, he gets a little embarrassed that he even cared enough to get angry in the first place

Tries to avoid doomscrolling but the content he does consume is usually aesthetic oriented. Musicians and singers, vacation inspo, occasionally baking content.

They're wanting to change the definition of water to see which water would qualify under the Clean Water Act...I wish I was making this up.

What this means, in layman's terms, is that not all water or wetlands would be under environmental protections, so some could legally be dumped in, scraped out of, or otherwise harmed.

The comment period for this is pretty short (just a few days left!) so please submit comments asking for ALL water to be protected.

How to begin a sustainable way of life

This is a draft of something I've been writing for a couple months. It is mainly focused on the culture of the USA. Feel free to repost or otherwise share, with or without credit.

Do not tell people what to do—help them do it! 

Give the gift of relief from being forced to engage in society’s unsustainable ways of life. 

“People need to eat more plant-based foods.” ->Talk about your favorite recipes, give others recipes, cook for them, and grow vegetables and plants in your garden and give them away as gifts. 

“People need to repair their clothes.” -> Offer to repair others’ clothes, and teach people how to repair their clothes. 

“People need to buy less clothes.” -> Give them old clothes that you don’t want, help them repair their clothes

“People need to buy less plastic stuff.” -> Learn to make things that can serve the same purpose, such as baskets, and give them as gifts. Let people borrow things you own so they don’t have to buy their own. 

“People need to stop using leafblowers and other gas-guzzling machinery.” -> Offer to rake the leaves. You can use them as compost in your own garden. 

“People need to be more educated about nature.”-> Learn about nature yourself. Tell people about nature. Be open about your love of creatures such as snakes, spiders, and frogs. Do not show awareness that this could be strange. You are not obligated to quiet down your enthusiasm for creepy crawlies to demonstrate awareness that it is weird. Point out at every opportunity how these animals are beneficial. 

“People need to use cars less.” -> Offer rides to others whenever you must go somewhere. Whenever you are about to go to the store, ask your neighbor or your friend who lives along the way, “Is there anything you need from the store?” 

You cannot control others’ behaviors, but you can free them from being controlled. 

If you think to yourself, “But this would be so difficult to do!” ask yourself WHY? Why does your society coerce you into less sustainable ways of living, forcing you to consume excessively? After thinking about this, consider that it is less simple and easy than you thought to make more sustainable choices, so why would you judge others for not doing it? 

Do not act alone—act with others! 

Environmentally friendly behaviors that can be done alone, without collaborating with or consulting another person, are the least powerful of all. Whenever an “environmentally friendly” behavior is suggested, figure out “How can I give this as a gift?” or “How can I make this possible on the level of a whole community?” 

“Personal choices” do not work because every single person has to make them individually. If you are focused on making your own personal choice, you are not focused on others. If you are not focused on others, you are not helping them. If nobody is helping each other, most people won’t be able to make the “personal choice.”

You inherently share an ecosystem with your neighbors  

            Start with your neighbors, the people physically close to you. You live on the same patch of land, containing roots from the same plants and trees. You can speak to them face to face without traveling, which means you can easily bring them physical things without using resources to travel. 

            Always talk to your neighbors and be friendly with them. Offer them favors unprompted and tell them about how your garden is doing. Do not be afraid to be annoying—a slightly annoying neighbor who is helpful, kind, and can be relied upon for a variety of favors or in times of need is a necessary and inevitable part of a good community. If you make the effort to be present in somebody’s life, they will have to put up with you on some occasions, but that is just life. We cannot rely on each other if we do not put up with each other. 

Simply spending time with someone influences them for good 

Every hour you spend outside with your neighbor is an hour your neighbor doesn’t spend watching Fox News. Every hour you spend talking with someone and interacting with them in the real world, eating real food and enjoying your real surroundings, is an hour you don’t spend only hearing a curated picture of what reality is like from social media. 

            Isolation makes it easy for people to become indoctrinated into extremist beliefs. When someone spends more time alone, watching TV, Youtube, or scrolling social media, than they do with others, their concept of what other people are like and what the world is like comes more from social media than real life. TV and online media are meant to influence you in a specific way. Simply restricting the access these influences have to yourself and others is helpful. 

A garden is the source of many gifts 

If you grow a garden, you can give your neighbors and friends the gift of food, plants, and crafted objects. This is one of the foundational ways to form community. When you give food, you provide support to others. When you give plants, you are encouraging and teaching about gardening. It is even better when you give recipes cooked from things you grew, or items crafted from things you grew. You can also give the gift of knowledge of how to grow these plants, cook these recipes, or craft these objects. 

More on gift-giving

            Some people are uncomfortable with receiving items or services as gifts. They want to feel like they are giving something back, instead of having obligation to return the favor hanging over them. 

            It can help to ask a simple favor that can be easily fulfilled. People generally like the feeling of helping someone else. 

When you give someone a gift, it can help to say something like “Oh, I have too many of this thing to take care of/store/eat myself! Do you think you could take some?” This makes your neighbor feel like they are helping you. 

When allowing others to borrow items, you might not get them back. Don’t worry about that. It just means the item found a place where it was needed the most. You can ask about the item if you think it might have been forgotten, and this can create an opportunity for a second meeting. But don’t press. 

If the person you give to insists upon some form of payment, this is a good opportunity to negotiate a trade. 

Ask to be given compostable or recyclable things 

Ask your neighbor to save compostable scraps, biodegradable cardboard and paper products, and any other items that might be put to use. Use them in your own compost pile. Or, start a compost pile at the edge of the yard where you both can add to it. Remember that “wet” compost like vegetable and fruit bits needs to be mixed with twice as much of “dry” and “woody” compost like cardboard, leaves, small twigs, paper and wood bits. 

Use the front yard for gardening

Overcome the cultural norm that the front yard is only decorative. Use the front yard for gardening so you can be seen by others enjoying your garden, and others can witness the demonstration of the possibilities of land. In the front yard, anything you do intentionally with your land can be witnessed. It also makes you a visible presence in your community. 

Grow staple foods 

Don’t just grow vegetables that cannot be the core component of a meal themselves. Grow potatoes, dry beans, black eyed peas and other nourishing, calorie-dense foods. Grow the ingredients of meals. You could even build a garden around a recipe.

Invite neighbors and friends over to eat food made from things you grew 

Be sure to send them home with leftovers.  

Grow plants for baskets 

Containers are one of the fundamental human needs. If we had more containers, we wouldn’t need plastic so much. You can learn to make baskets, and to grow plants that provide the raw materials for baskets. 

If someone rakes their leaves, ask to have the leaves  

If you see someone putting leaves in bags, don’t be afraid to ask if you can have the leaves. More likely than not they will be happy to agree. 

Collaborate with neighbors to plant things in the no-man’s-land of the property line 

In the border land between your neighbor’s yard and your yard, it is almost always just mowed grass because no one can plant anything without it affecting their neighbor. But these border lands add up to a lot of space. It would be much better if you talked to your neighbor about what would be nice to plant there, and together created a plan for that space. 

Give others the freedom to wander 

Make it clear that you will not get mad if the neighbor’s kids play in your yard or run across it. Invite the neighbors onto your land as much as possible. Tell them they are allowed to spend time in a favored spot whenever they would like.  

The power of the hand-made sign 

If there is a yard sale, you always know about it because of the hand-drawn signs placed around. Therefore, a cookout or unwanted item exchange can be announced the same way. In rural areas I have seen hand-made signs that say: FIREWOOD or WE BUY GOATS or EGGS. This is one of the few technologies of community that remain in the USA. If someone who looks to buy and sell can put up a hand-made sign, why shouldn’t you?  

Religious people or people with strong political opinions like to put signs everywhere. If they have the confidence and courage to do so, why shouldn’t you? 

So if there is a message you would like everyone to see, use the simple power of the hand-made sign. Proclaim “BEE FRIENDLY ZONE!” above your pollinator garden with all the confidence of a religious fundamentalist billboard. Announce to the world, “VEGETABLES FREE TO ALL—JUST ASK!” “WE TAKE LEAVES—NO PESTICIDES.” Instead of YARD SALE, or perhaps in conjunction with YARD SALE, you can write, PLANT EXCHANGE or SEED SWAP or CLOTHING SWAP. Who can stop you? 

Someone has to do it for society to change  

Some of these ideas might be eccentric, strange, or even socially unacceptable, but there is no way to change what is normal except to move against it. Someone has to be weird. It might as well be you. 

A blonde man with bangs that cover half his face to the point that one eye is obscured. He often wears white and gold, but at one point had a dramatic reveal for his second outfit. He is well-read, and has traveled all over the world, with some of his world travels being specifically to stalk the player. His affinity for monsters combined with someone hurting him in the past (possibly creating an inferiority complex) led him to side with a fearsome monster capable of destroying the world, all so he can pursue power. And he also attempted to kill the chosen one/the player in the process.

Am I talking about Jasper from Dragon Quest XI, or Volo from Pokémon Legends: Arceus?